Speedometer.



No. 816,639. I PATENTED APR. 3, 1906.

J. H. BULLARD.

SPEEDOMBTER.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 30. 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1'.

No. 816,639. PATBNTED APR. 3, 1906.

' J. H. BULLARD.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES H. 'BULLAVRD, or SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

' SPEEDOMETERE Specification of Letters Patent.

"Patented April 3, 1906.

Application filed December 30, 1904. Serial No. 239,001.

is operated by a time-movement, marks being imprinted or impressed onthe record disk from a source outside of the time-movement to indicate anumber of periods recurring within a given time.

The object of the present invention is particularly to provide arecording instrument associated witha time-movement, as an ordinaryclock, the record-disk and the clockdial occupying the same face of theinstrument, whereby they may be read simultaneously.

The invention further comprises means to operate the recorddial from theminutehand of the time-movement, sai'id dial being removable therefromindependently of the hour-indicating dial. i

The invention consists, further, in suitable mechanism for rotating thehour-dial by a single movement at the end of each hourly period by meansof mechanism controlled by but not operated from the time-movement.

St'll another object of the invention is to provide means to print orimpress on.tl1e record-dial hourly records, each occupying a lineextending entirely around the dial, the lines of the record'beingconcentrically disposed instead of spirally disposed.

Having these various objects in view, the invention consists in theconstruction set forth in the following specification, and clearlypointed out in the claims appended thereto.-

' The invention is clearly illustrated in the drawings accompanyingthespecification, in which- Figure 1 shows a sectional elevation of thedevice, the plane of the section being on line 11, Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is asectional elevation in a plane at right angles to Fig. 1, the plane ofthe section being on line 2 2 of the last-named figure. Fig. 3 is afront elevation of the instrument with the record and record-dial and 4is a perspective view of a portion of the hour-dial, showing its meansof support, dotted lines showing the position to which the dial may bemoved. Fig. 5 is a front elevation of. a cam mounted on the hour-arbor,a portion of the lever being shown whereby the hour-dial is rotated andwhereby the puncturing'or printing recording device is shifted radiallyof the dial. Fig. 6 is a side elevation of the parts shown nFig. 5 andshows the manner of supporting the lever which rotates the hour-dial,whereby movement may be imparted to said lever lengthwise of the axisthereof to effect its temporary disengagement from its operating-cam.Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic view of a circuit breaking mechanism wherebymovements may be imparted to any suitable printing or puncturing deviceassociated with the recording instrument by means of an electromagnet.

Fig. 8 shows a detailed construction of a solehoid to operate thepuncturing or printing" imprinted or impressed on a dial rotated by andin consonance with the minute-arbor of a clock-movement, the disk beingdivided by radial lines, as shown in Fig 3, to indicate minutes, therecord of speed for each hour being dis layed in concentric circles andthe record eing constantly visible to the operator of the vehicle.

'Assuming that the device is employed to record the speed of anautomobile, the circular casing a, Fig. 2, would be secured to thevehicle in some position where the disk on the front of the instrumentwould be easily visible. This circular casing is arranged to receive acylindrical case I), which contains the clock-movement, with whichtherecording disk is associated, and also the puncturing device or theprinting device, whereby the record of the distance traveled may be imprinted or im ressed on the disk in such mark ner as to ma e the latterlegible on the face thereof. The particularmechanism where by the casingof the puncturing device is operated is of minor importancethat is tosay, the kind or type of mechanism used to. actuate the printing orpuncturing stylus is unimportant and is not'an important part of thehour-dialin operative position thereon. Fig. 1 present invention andwill be claimed only will be in proper relation to the exposed fighereinas a device suitable to actuate said stylus. An electrically-operateddevice to operate the stylus is shown in the drawings,

i I as a device of this character is very easily applied and adaptsitself readily to the end in view; but it is not essential that itshould be electrically erated.

The cylin ical clock-case b is provided with a glass front a, supportedin position on the case by the usual face-ring ()5. Inside theclock-case the'usual time-movement is pro vided mounted intherectangular frame e,

.the latter being shown in Figs. l-and 2 .par

ticularly. Only a portion of the time-movement has been shown in these-drawings that is to say, the central. arbor, which is the only one withwhich any connection is made.

. all of the-other devices associated with the instrument being soapplied to-ithe clockmovement as to not interfere with the. ordinaryconstruction of the latter. The hands of the clock are eliminated. Thecentral arbor consists, as-usual, of a shaft and a-sleeve thereon, thesleeve rotating once in twelve hours and thelshaft once an hour.; Theshaft is indicated by f, and the sleeve by f Thecentral shaft of theclock mechanism is extended far enough beyond the face of therecord-disk g topermit the a plication thereto of a disk h, bearin arounthe edge thereof numerals running om 5 to 60, dividing said disk intotwelve spaces. is a circular plate and screwed onto the end of the shaftf is a t umb-nut 7c. Fixed on the arbor back of the disk 9 isanotherdisk m, which serves as a sup ort between which and the circular plate jt e disk It and the disk 9 are clamped. On thedisk m is a inc, whichextends beyond the face of t e disk far enough to receive the disk g,the disk h,-. and

ate 3', whichare each provided with a hole for. thepin 0, whereby theseparts-may always bea lied in the same position relative to the is m,whereby when the recorddisk is applied the numeralson the. .disk h ureon the hour-dial 1). When the-numeral is in the position of 5 in Fig. 1,it will indicate the point on the record-disk at which the hourly recordbegins, and it is when this number 60 arrives in. this position that theradial shifting of the uncturing, orprinting stylus q, Fig. 2, is e'ected to beginsaid hourly record in vone of the cir c1 1lar pathscomprised between the concentric lines 1',

Fig. 3, A glance at said disk 9 in this last- Outside. of said disksiepse 'dial and the record-disk, it is only necessary hind the glassface 0, the base of the plug having a flange w, whereby it may besecured to the case by screws, and in said plug is mounted on a stem 00a cylindrical pad y of some material which will absorb. colored'ink, one

.side of saidcylinder lying in .close proximity to the front'of therecord-disk g, the latter being made, preferably, of relatively stifi'paper. This stem 00 extends through the casingand is provided with a.thumb-nut as,

whereby it may be rotated. Lying directly back of the plug w is anelectromagnet 3, preferably in the form of a solenoid, a detail of whichisshown in Fig. 8. Reference to this figure shows that the armature 4 ofthe soleno1d 3 is connected by a cross-head 5 at the rear end thereof toposts 6, extending from the ends of said cross-head to a plate 7,extending across the. front of the solenoid, constituting a sort offrame, actuated by the solenoid to move toward the backside of therecord-disk'g. The plate 7 is provided with a vertical groove 8, whichis T-shaped in cross-section, in which the uncturing or printing stylusg mayslide free y. Said plate and posts 6 are supported at one end bythe solenoid and at the opposite ends thereof by the plates 6,- throughwhich the posts 6 pass,

saidplates being secured to or forming part of the' frame 6. A lever 9,pivotally supwith a forked end toengage said stylus, the opposite end ofthe lever-also bein forked to engage apin 12in the end of an e bow-lever13, ivotally supported-on the frame of the 0100 at 14,- the upper arm ofsaid lever being provided with a se mental rack 15, which engages apinion 16, ed on the shaft 17 of the our-dial .The lower endof thesegmental rack, as s own in Fig. 4, is provided with an inturned end 18,which bears normally on the .outeredge of a step-cam 19, which is shownin Figs. 2, 5, and 6 of the drawings. This cam 19- is a s iral cam andis secured on the sleeve; f and consequently rotates with" the latteronce in twelve hours, and is provided with steps 20 011.,theperi herythereof the distance between each of w fu to one hour. The shaft 14,which constitutes the axis of the elbow-lever 13, extends across theframe of the clock, as shown in Figs. 2

' and6, and is, provided with aspring 21,which has the doublefunction ofpressing the elbowlever toward the'cam l9, audit is also a torported onthe clock-frame at 10, is provided 'ch is equivalent tion. When the camhas rotated such a distance as to cause the end of the elbow-lever 13 todro off the last step, the inturned end 18 of sai lever will drop ontothe sleeve 7, as shown in Fig. 5, on which it may rotate indefinitelywi'thout imparting further movement to the hour-dial p. To permit thismovement of the end of the elbow-lever 13,

I the hub of the cam has an'annular channel or groove 22 out therein, asshown in Fig. 5, the wall of which is cut away at the foot of the lastof the steps 20 to permit the rectangularly-disposed end 18 of theelbow-lever to enter said groove, the point at which this hub is cutaway being indicated at 23, Fig. 5. It is evident, there ore, when itbecomes necessary-to put on a new dial this in'turned end 18 of theelbow-lever 13 must be disengaged from said groove 22, and this isefiected by opening the front of the instrument and ressing on the shaft14, on which the elbowever is secured, moving the latter toward the backof thecasing far enough to disengage the end 18 and then rotating theshaft 14 to swing the upper arm of said lever upward to the positionshown in Fig. 1, which will rotate the hour-dial p back to twelveoclock, provided the cam is in the position it would occupy at twelveoclock. Otherwise the lever will swing down onto the ed e of the cam andset the dial p to the correct our, for the cam being continuouslyrotatable will be in position to set the hour-dial at whatever point thelever 3 will be located on the cam in resetting. The cam beingfrictionally secured on its arbor may be adjusted, whatever may be thehour at which the record begins, so that the end of the lever 13 willrest on the hi h-.

est pointof the cam, thus insuring aull "twelve-hour record. When thischange of adjustment of the cam is effected, it becomes .necessary tochange the relation of the hourdial to its actuating-rack 15, and forthis purpose this dial-may be moved to disengage its pinion 16 from therack 15, and to this end its shaft 17 is endwise slidable in itsbearings 23, and, as. shown in the drawings, the shaft 17 is supportedtherein by one end only, and there is an annular groove between the dialp and the end of the pinion 16 into which an arm 24 may drop, said arm,if desired, being held in engaging position by a spring 25; In said Fig.4'aport1on of the arm-24 is shown in a raised posltion in dotted lines.It is thus apparent that the adjustment of the dial 1? ma be madeindependent entirely ofthe rac 15. Obviously a record-disk may be put onat any time before'the cam 19 has completed its cycle, and the recordwill begin in that one of the concentric spaces, countlng from theoutermost inward, which corresponds with the number of ste s 20 on thecam which have passed under t 1e end of the lever 13.

Referring now to Figs. 2 and 9, it is seen that the solenoid 3 issupported on a piece of insulating material 26, which by a screw 27 issecured to the back side of the clock-frame e, and to this piece 26 twospring-fingers 28 and 29- are secured with which the ends of the wire 30are connected, with which the solenoid is wound.

Secured to the casng a and insulated therefrom are two spring-fingers 31and 32, which are connected with binding-posts 33 on the back side ofthe case a, from which posts the wires 34 extend which constitute theelectrical circuit shown in Fig. 7, and in which.

figure the solenoid is conventionally shown only and the circuit coinrising a battery or other suitable source of e ectricity 35. Oneterminal of the circuit is secured to a'station- 'ary spring-finger 36,located in suitable position to bear on a rotatin member 37, whichordinarily is rotated by t e hub of the wheel of the vehicle, and onthis member are metal ribs 38, which are electrically connected with theother terminal of the circuit, whereby as the member 37 rotates andthese strips come in contact with the finger 36 the circuit will beclosed and the solenoid 3 energized, thereby causing the plate 7,connected with the armature of the solenoid and bearing the stylus g, tobe moved sharply toward the back side of the record-disk g, bringing thestylus into contact with the latter-and forcing it against the inked pady, causing a spot or point to be rinted on the front of the dial. Assoon as t e circuit is opened by the rotation of the member 37 thespring 39, (see Fig. 8,) located between the end of the solenoidcoil andthe cross-head 5, will retract the plate 7 and the stylus. This movementtakes place so quickly as not to interfere in any way with the rotationof the recorddial. Referring again to Fig. 7 and assuming that therotating member 27 is moved at such speed that the circuit will beclosed to indicate each quarter-of-a-mile run, then at some point onsaid rotating member the metal ribs 38 will be doubled, as shown,whereby a double dot would be printed on the recorddial at the end'ofeach mile. The hour which appears in the aperture u of the case willindicate the hour at which the rotation of the cam was completed, andconsequently when the record was finished. Therefore by tak-. ing noteof this when a new record-disk is put on some time after note may bemade on the completed record of the time at which the run finished, thehour being indicated as above and the minute by observing at what pointon the-dial relative to the fi res surrounding the inner edge thereof te record terminates. 7

It is-of course quite obvious that the dial p, indicating the hour, maybe dispensed with altogether; but this would not affect in an way theoperation of the device as a spec i cording instrume' It is to be notedthat each of the annular spaces comprised between the lines r, Fig. 3,on the record-disk is -the space allotted to each hourly record, thedisk rotating once in that time. Therefore the cam 19 is so laid outthat the number of steps in its periphery will coincide with the numberof these annular spaces referred to. Furthermore, it is to be noted thatwhen the inturned end 18 of the arm 13 falls off the last step and intothe annular groove 22 the largest diameter of the cam lies directly overthe end of the last step of the cam, and therefore as soon as onerecord-disk has been filled another may be put on to take its placeimmediately, if desired, and the arm 13 pushed back and swung up overthe edge of the cam again. If the record-disk is not replaced, it willcontinue to run without, however, receiving any record within the spacesbetween the lines r. The stylus, however, will continue to mark thedisk, but always in the same path on the margin thereof outside of therecord-spaces, and the dial p will remain stationary at the point wherethe last record was completed, the numerals on this dial, together withthe point of termination of the record, constituting a record of thetime at which the run was completed. It is therefore seen that somemeans to reset the time-dial p is necessary,

as any length of time may elapse between the completion of onerecord-disk and the beginning of another, and this adi'ustment, of thetime-dial has beenabove exp ained. From the foregoingdescription it isclear that this instrument combines a clock to show the lapse of timeand a record-dial to indicate and record the speed of the vehicle foreach minute of the time ela sed, both the clock-face and the dial 7 faceeing on the same side of the instrument and easily readable together,the record-dial being easily. removable by simply opening the face ofthe instrument.

. Obviously the inked pad may be dispensed with and a puncture serve tomark the dial.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States, is 1. In an instrument of theclass described, the combination with a suitable power mech anism, of arecord-disk rotating continuously at minute-hand speed and receivingduring its rotation the record of successive occurrences, and atime-dial having a partial rotary movestates ment at periods, saidtime-dial being ar ran ed in complemental relation to the recor -disk onthe same sideor face of the instrument.

'2. In an instrument of the class described, the combination of a powermechanism having an arbor rotating at minute-hand speed,

a record-disk turning with said arbor and.

having minute-period indications, a separate time-dial havinghour-period indications and exposed for reading on thesam'e side or faceof the instrument as the record-disk, and means for periodicallyrotating the time-dial to bring its indications into complementalreading relation to those of the record-disk.

3. In an instrument of the class described, the combination with a clockmechanism and the center arbor thereof, of a record-disk supported on,and rotatable with the latter,'a device to mark the dial intermittentlyduring its rotation, a second time-disk and suitable mechanism to impartartial rotatory movement to the time dis synchronously with the radialmovement of the markin device. 4. In an instrument of the classascribed, the combination with a clock mechanism and the center arborthereof, of a record-disk supported on said arbor to rotate atminutehand speed, a helical cam supported on said arbor to rotate athour-hand speed, said cam having steps on its periphery corresponding tohourly divisions of t1me; a second timedisk; a device to intermittentlymark the record-disk during its rotation, and a member bearing on theperipheryof the cam and connected with the marking device and with thetime-disk, whereby the assing of a step of the cam will shift themarking device radiially ofthe record-disk, and impart partial rotatorymovement to the time-disk.

5. In an instrument of the class described, the combination with a clockmechanism and .the center arbor thereof, of a record-disk supported onsaid arbor to rotate at minutehand speed, and provided with radial divi--sional 7 lines to indicate minute periods; a

second time-dial provided with hour-divisions indicated by numerals;said time-dial being rotatably supported on a separate arbor; andexposed for reading at the same side or face of the instrument as therecorddisk and bearing a complemental relation to the latter mechanismto mark the record-dial during its rotation, and means of connectionbetween the marking mechanism and said time-dial, whereby it may berotated at periods to shift from one hour to the next for eachrevolution of the record-disk,

6. In an instrument of the class described, the combination with a clockmechanism and the center arbor thereof, of a record-disk supported onsaid arbor to rotate at minutehand speed, and provided with radialdivisional lines to indicate minute periods; said periods beingindicated by numerals; a sec- 0nd time-dial provided with hourlydivisions indicated by numerals, both dials being readabl'e on thefaceof the instrument, mechanism to rotate said record-disk continuously,and means to rotate the time-dial to bring each hourly division thereofinto a certain position relative to a fixed point at the completion ofeach revolution of the record-disk.

7. The combination of a clock mechanism and a center arbor thereof, of arecord-disk supported on the arbor to rotate at minutehand speed, ahelical cam supported on said arbor to rotate at hour-hand speed, amarking device for the record-disk, a lever bearing on the periphery ofthe cam and connected with the marking device to move the latterradially of the disk by the movement of one end of said lever toward theaxis of the cam, the latter having an annular groove in the hub thereofopening toward the side of the cam, there being an opening extendinginto said groove at right angles to the axis of the cam to permit theend of the lever bearing on the cam to drop into said groove 3 saidlever being movable away from the cam to disengage it from the groove inthe latter and to permit its engagement again with the periphery of theearn.

8. In an instrument of the class described, the combination of a clockmechanism and the usual rotatable center arbor therefor, of arecord-disk supported on the arbor, a device to mark the record-disk,and electrically-actuated means to actuate the marking device comprisingan electromagnet within the instrument and a circuit extending throughthe casing of the instrument and including said magnet, a battery and amakeand-break device, together with other means to automatically breakthe circuit when the instrument is removed from its support.

9. In an instrument of the class described, a rotatable record-disk andmechanism to mark a record on said disk in paths encircling the axisthereof, certain points in the path of the recording-marks beingdistinguished from the others by a change in the character of the mark.

JAMES H. BULLARD.- Witnesses:

WM. H. CHAPIN, KVI. OLEMoNs.

